Papworth Trust’s programme at the Cambridge Centre has been hailed for both getting people back into work and keeping them in employment.
The scheme was visited yesterday by the work and pensions select committee ahead of the government’s plan to revisit the Work Programme next year.
Frank Field, the Birkenhead MP who chairs the committee, was joined by Conservative colleagues John Glen, MP for Salisbury, and South Cambridgeshire MP Heidi Allen and shown around the centre, discussing the benefits of the programme with those who have benefitted from it.
Speaking on behalf of the committee, Mrs Allen said: “We want to see examples of where the work programme is working really well across the UK.
“Papworth Trust is one of the best, not only in terms of the amount of people it helps but how long they stay in employment.
“It was really refreshing to see such a positive attitude. I know Papworth Trust’s ethos is ‘I Can’ and that is so important when it comes to getting people back into the world of work.”
Vicky McDermott, chief executive at Papworth Trust, met with the committee to reveal why the Cambridge Centre team is one of the best performing work programmes in the country.
She said: “We were delighted to welcome the select committee to see first-hand our excellent work at the Cambridge Centre.
“We have a bespoke and tailored approach to moving our customers forward and that is one of the reasons why we have achieved real success.
“It was a great chance to discuss this with the committee, look at ways the work programme can be offered differently for different people and to generally reiterate that more must be done if the disability employment gap is not to widen further.”
Polly O’Neill, from Cambridge, has taken part in the scheme’s back to work programme as well as taking a floristry course in a bid to improve her work options.
She said: “The Papworth Trust Work Programme has given me my confidence and structure back. They have always been there for me and I have really enjoyed it as well.”